UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — It's been a week of homecomings for Paige Bueckers as the former UConn star will play in the state of Connecticut for the first time since helping the Huskies win the school's 12th national championship nearly two months ago.
Last week was a chance to play in her home state of Minnesota. Now she'll be trying to get the Dallas Wings their first victory of the season as they face the winless Sun on Tuesday night.
“It will be weird not stepping on this court with a UConn uniform,” Bueckers told reporters Monday. “It will be something I enjoy with a new team and new organization. It’s great to be back, great to continue on this journey.”
Bueckers has never lost at Mohegan Sun Arena, where the Sun plays their home games. She went 15-0 at the arena, including winning four Big East championships while playing for UConn. She looked right at home during shootaround Tuesday morning, hitting the halfcourt shot at the end of practice. Something she's done nearly every time in her rookie season so far.
“I have some great memories here. I don’t think we lost here in my UConn career so we’ll try to carry those vibes over to this game and approach it with a winning mentality,” Bueckers said.
Despite the Wings' 0-4 record to start the season, the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft has gotten off to a strong beginning to her career. She leads the team in points (13.0), assists (6.3) and steals (1.8).
“She just continues to do things that should be surprising but aren’t,” Wings coach Chris Koclanes said. “I take a step back to just appreciate, the type of player and even more so the type of person that she is.”
The rookie coach has been impressed with Bueckers' mental approach to the game and how much she invests into it.
“She wants to really be a great leader and is committing time into developing those skills to help this culture and her teammates as a rookie.” he said. “So that’s been really impressive on the floor. I think you take for granted some of the things she’s able to do. But extremely high IQ, she’s picked up, you know, concepts and reads, very early. And then it’s just, you know, she’ll adapt to the physicality.”
She had 12 points and 10 assists in her first homecoming game against the Lynx at the Target Center last Wednesday.
“We’re not setting expectations for ourselves, just taking it day by day,” Bueckers said. “Setting expectations limits you in what you can accomplish. We’re trying to grow in the film room, grow in the weight room, grow on the court and grow with our chemistry. Stay optimistic, stay positive, don’t let the last game affect the next game. Learn from the past and have it motivate you to be better.”
Dallas returns on June 20 to play at Connecticut for a second and final time this season.
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